Out of the hundreds that auditioned, 64 amateur cooks are through to battle it out over four weeks of heats, producing some of the most inspiring, exceptional and unusual food ever seen on the series. The first eight hopefuls try to prove to judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace that they have the potential to be the 2017 MasterChef Champion. This year sees the introduction of the all new MasterChef market, which is stocked full of amazing produce. The first challenge is to invent and cook one dish using what's available in the market. They have an hour and twenty minutes to dazzle the judges and prove they are good enough to stay in the competition. After tasting all eight dishes, John and Gregg decide which five cooks are good enough to stay. The five remaining contestants must then cook two courses that will excite not just John and Gregg but also last year's MasterChef finalists. John and Gregg then decide which three contestants deserve to go through to the quarter-final.

It is the first quarter-final of the series, and the six cooks face a seriously daunting test set by one of the country's toughest food critics. This episode's brief has been set by journalist and broadcaster Amol Rajan, and the contestants must cook either a savoury dish using Indian spices or a chocolate dessert with a playful twist. After cooking their dish, the contestants must stand before Amol Rajan, John and Gregg to hear what they think of their dish and how well they have kept to the brief. At the end of the quarter-final, the best cooks are put through to Knockout Week, taking another step closer to being crowned MasterChef Champion 2017.